The gp100 protein has been demonstrated as an antigen in several human cancers, including glioblastoma and melanoma (Saikali et al., J. Neurooncol. 81(2): 139-148 (2007); and Cormier et al., J. Immunother. 21 (1): 27-31 (1991)). A peptide comprising amino acid residues 154-162 of the gp100 protein (gp100154-162) is abundantly presented on the surface of tumors and also binds the MHC molecule HLA-A2 with relative high affinity (Skipper et al., Int. J. Cancer 82(5): 669-677 (1999); Parkhurst et al., J. Immunol. 157(6):2539-2548. (1996)). Therefore, gp100154-162 is an ideal tumor target antigen for cancer immunotherapy. T cells with specificity to this epitope, however, are difficult to obtain in HLA-A2-positive patients in amounts useful for therapeutic purposes.
In view of the foregoing, there is a need in the art for gp100-reactive T cells that can be obtained in therapeutic amounts for use in treating cancer patients. The invention provides such T cells and methods of treating cancer, especially melanoma.